Delhi rains: More misery? IMD issues yellow alert for Saturday

NEW DELHI: Some parts of the city saw light rain on Thursday. The intensity of the rain is likely to increase on Saturday and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has sounded a "yellow alert" for moderate rain, which may aggravate the flood situation in the city.
The met department's data shows that Safdarjung, which is the city's base station, witnessed very light rain as it logged 1.6 mm rainfall between 8:30 am and 5:30 pm.However, Lodhi Road and Ayanagar saw light rain, receiving 3.2 mm and 4.4mm rainfall, respectively, during the same period.
The maximum temperature on Thursday rose to 34.2 degrees Celsius, one degree below normal. The minimum temperature was recorded at 26.2 degrees Celsius, also one degree below normal. The relative humidity oscillated between 72% and 92%.
The forecast of the IMD said that light rain or thundershowers are likely on Friday, but moderate rain or thundershowers are predicted for Saturday.
"The eastern side of the monsoon trough is expected to shift towards the north. It will increase the moisture level in the city, leading to an intense spell of rain," said Kuldeep Srivastava, scientist and head, Regional Weather Forecasting Centre, IMD. He added that an intense spell of rain is expected from Saturday afternoon to Sunday morning.
In July so far, the city has recorded over 100 mm of rainfall for two consecutive days. The cumulative rainfall recorded in this month is 308 mm as against 209.7 mm, which is the usual level for the month of July.
Delhi's air quality index (AQI), meanwhile, continued to stay at 77 - within the "satisfactory" category - for the second consecutive day. According to the Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi, the air quality is likely to remain in the "satisfactory" category till July 16.